What Works: The Future of Local News

Jaida Grey Eagle is a photojournalist working for the Sahan Journal in Minneapolis through Report For America. She is Oglala Lakota and was born in Pine Ridge, South Dakota, and raised in Minneapolis. Her photography has been published in a wide range of publications, and featured on a billboard on Hennepin Avenue in downtown Minneapolis. She is also a co-producer of "Sisters Rising," a documentary film about six Native American women reclaiming person and tribal sovereignty in the face of sexual violence. Dan and Ellen offer quick takes on paywalls and media companies that target well-heeled readers, and on Evan Smith's announcement that he's stepping down from the Texas Tribune.

Joshua Darr, a professor at Louisiana State University, is right in the What Works sweet spot: His research delves into the divisive partisan rhetoric that infuses our national political debate and whether communities with a vibrant local news source experience less polarization. Dan and Ellen talk with Joshua about his research, as well as the Trusting News project report on how local and regional news organizations can do a better job of connecting with conservative audiences. Dan offers a quick take on plans by Axios to expand local news sites into 25 cities in 2022, and Ellen looks at a promising network of nonprofit newsrooms planned across Ohio. (This episode has been corrected to add material on the Trusting News project and efforts to publish a diversity of voices on opinion pages.)

Phil Balboni is a legendary figure in broadcast journalism, as well as the founder, president and CEO of GlobalPost, a highly acclaimed international news site. His list of awards is lengthy, and includes the Peabody, Murrow and Emmy. His latest venture is DailyChatter, a nonpartisan newsletter that covers international news. The Columbia School of Journalism recently announced that it was creating an endowed professorship in his honor. In this podcast, Phil talks about his passion for local news and what he hopes this professorship will accomplish.

Damon Kiesow is a professor at the University of Missouri School of Journalism, where he holds the Knight Chair in Digital Editing and Producing. But Dan and Ellen first met Damon about 10 years ago when he was at The Boston Globe, developing mobile products for Boston.com and BostonGlobe.com.

He focuses on something called human-centered design: how readers interact with a print newspaper versus a digital site. Dan and Ellen also look at a collaborative effort to fight corruption in South Carolina, and the vibrant Boston Phoenix archives that have been digitized by Northeastern University.

Rhema Bland is the first permanent director of the Ida B. Wells Society for Investigative Reporting at the University of North Carolina school of journalism. She's a veteran journalist who has reported and produced for CBS, the Florida Times-Union, WJCT and the New York Daily News. The society's mission is essential to the future of the industry: to "increase the ranks, retention and profile of reporters and editors of color in the field of investigative reporting."

Penelope (Penny) Muse Abernathy, a visiting professor at Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism, arguably launched a movement with her path-breaking research on "news deserts" and the forces undermining community newspapers across the nation. Abernathy, a former executive with The New York Times and Wall Street Journal, was also Knight Chair in Journalism and Digital Media Economics at the University of North Carolina from 2008 to 2020. She talks about why this is a pivotal moment for community journalism, about her forthcoming research and about why her journalism students are still bullish on speaking truth to power at the local level.

Art Cullen, editor of the twice-weekly Storm Lake Times in rural Buena Vista County, Iowa, tells the story of his fight for survival at a time when local papers across the country are cutting back and shutting down. The paper is the subject of a vivid documentary, "Storm Lake," that will be broadcast on most PBS stations on Monday, Nov. 15, at 10 p.m., including GBH-2 in Boston.

Chris Lovett, longtime news director and anchor of the Boston Neighborhood Network News local cable access show, reflects on his career in community journalism, on camera and off. A Dorchester native, he's interviewed local activists, politicos and neighborhood stalwarts. And he's not done with journalism yet, so stay tuned.